Traveling Tips and Tricks - The Art of Smart Packing

Packing is very important. Forget a crucial item and you're left upset and scrambling to find the nearby store in your destination. Packing too much and you end up unsystematic, weighed down with heavy bags, and bleeding money to pay for expensive airline baggage fees. So, it is a must to recall the most basic and useful packing tips and tricks that every traveler should learn.

1. Roll, don't fold.

Many travel specialists including backpackers who stuff months of clothing into a pack of the size of a box of wine agree that rolling is the best and smartest way of packing. Firmly rolled clothes take less space and they are less prone to getting your clothes wrinkled.

2. Create a packing list

When it comes to packing, theidlers fall short. Begin your packing process days or even weeks ahead of your travel date. This will gives you the enough time to create a complete list and buy extra items you might need for your destination.

3. Be informed of your airline's baggage-fee rule

Knowing the airlines'complex and bewildering baggage fee rules is the key to any budget-minded packing technique. Most of the airlines allow travelers to check at least one bag on intercontinental flights, most of the U.S. airlines charge big cash for bags checked on local flights. Spirit Airlines, the infamously customer-unfriendly discounter even rate as much as $100 for carry-on luggages.

4. Follow the 3-1-1 rule

Do you know what will happen if you don’t follow the Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) 3-1-1 rule for carry-on baggage? Try to carry a big bottle of shampoo or a full-size gel deodorant through the security line and the TSA will likely impound your stuff and hold you up in the line. Therefore, know the rules - all liquids carriedon board must be in 3.4-ounce bottles or lesser and must be in a single, transparent, quart-size zip-top bag

5. Pack dual-purpose clothes

If it's two-in-one it’s one less item to pack. Dual-purpose items like the pants that can be changed into shorts or jacket that turns into a travel pillow are worthy their weight in airline luggage fees.

6. Layer

This advice is double: Wear layers and pack in layers. Firstly, your on-the-road clothing should have plenty of layers, which will help you jet set through different weather in style and comfort. Second, the things in your bag should be crammed in well-ordered layers for easy checking. According to the TSA, "Pack things in layers - electronics one layer, shoes one layer, clothes one layer, etc." so that the security agent screening your luggage can get a clear picture of what's inside. The quicker the TSA agent can check your stuff, the faster you'll pass through the security line.

7. Never check important items

It's dreadfully important to keep your valued and indispensable belongings in your carry-on bag, not in your checked baggage. Your passport, credit cards, I.D, money, jewelry, electronics and other essentials must always be brought on board with you. We perhapsdon’t have to inform you why you need to keep your passport and wallet with you. But if the airline misplaces or lost your luggage or if a TSA agent gets sticky fingers), you'll regret packing your expensive things in a checked bag.